This show has layers

Capturing the whimsy and wonder of the natural world binds the three featured artists in the September Show from Manzanita’s Hoffman Gallery: painters Matthew Dennison and Lena Lenček and clay sculptor Serafine Lilien.

“I hope my work creates a conversation, perhaps on the fragility of the world around us and the beauty contained there,” Dennison said. “We are a thread in these layers of life around us. My intent is to point people back to the natural world, reminding us that we are connected to this land and place.”

Lena Lenček’s collection, “Still Lives in a Time of Turmoil,” reflects her past and present.

“Life has taken me from the Adriatic Sea and Julian Alps of my childhood in Italy to the East Coast of the US, where I studied Russian philology and studio arts,” said Lenček, who now teaches at Reed College and writes and paints in Neahkahnie and Manzanita. “My drawings and paintings, which I call ‘geochromes,’ remember Arthur Dove, Albert and Arthur Runquist, Benozzo Gozzoli and my sister Alice.”

Working with clay, Serafine Lilien creates whimsical yet realistic sculptures of dogs and cats. She captures the character of the animals and sees and creates their love and sensitivity in the gestures and poses of her pieces. Her art background includes studying and sculpting the figure at the National Academy of Design in New York and Artida Arts Inc. in Italy. She has an undergraduate degree in medical illustration and has been a part-time artist for all her life.

The Hoffman Center for the Arts is located at 594 Laneda Avenue in Manzanita and is open Thursday through Sunday from 1 to 5 pm. For more information, go to hoffmanarts.org.